The present invention relates to installations for the distribution of food products, particularly confectionery products such as sweets, of the type comprising:
A NUMBER OF CONVEYORS ALIGNED LONGITUDINALLY TO CARRY ALONG A PRIMARY CONVEYOR LINE ROWS OF SAID PRODUCTS EXTENDING TRANSVERSE TO THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF THE CONVEYOR;
AN ALIGNMENT DEVICE TO ALIGN IN LONGITUDINALLY SPACED APART TRANSVERSE ROWS THE PRODUCTS CARRIED ALONG SUCH PRIMARY CONVEYOR LINE;
A NUMBER OF TRANSVERSE CONVEYORS, ARRANGED TRANSVERSELY WITH RESPECT TO THE PRIMARY CONVEYOR LINE, TO RECEIVE FROM THE LATTER ROWS OF PRODUCTS AND TO FEED THEM IN SINGLE LONGITUDINAL FILES TO RESPECTIVE PACKAGING MACHINES, AND
A NUMBER OF TRANSFER MEANS, DISPOSED UPSTREAM OF EACH TRANSVERSE CONVEYOR, TO TRANSFER ROWS OF PRODUCTS FROM THE PRIMARY CONVEYOR LINE TO THE RESPECTIVE TRANSVERSE CONVEYORS.
Installations of this type are known for use in the distribution of products to a number of packaging machines, as illustrated for example in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,429,416. In such installations the transfer of the transverse rows of products from the primary conveyor line to each transverse conveyor takes place directly, as a function of the demand of each packaging machine, independently of the demand of the other packaging machines. In this way the successive transfers of transverse rows of products from the primary conveyor line to each transverse conveyor are distributed randomly since they occur only when the associated packaging machine demands further products. Consequently, when a packaging machine demands products the transfer means may be exhausted of products, or alternatively the transverse rows of products may be conveyed along the whole primary conveyor line without being transferred to any transverse conveyor.
An object of this invention is to avoid the aforesaid disadvantages by providing an installation which is able to satisfy the maximum demand of the packaging machines associated with transverse conveyors of installations of the aforesaid type, so as to reduce to a minimum the quantity of products not transferred at end of the primary conveyor line.